Do You Know What Today Is?
by stelena1981
Summary: Anniversaries and conversation.


"So you know today is our anniversary, right Stefan"?

Elena stares at him expectantly, all the while drinking the wine he poured for her as he finishes preparing dinner.

"Hmmm...today is one of the special days in our relationship but I don't count it as an anniversary."

She looks at him with the face that suggests he explain himself or else. She even raised an eyebrow.

Unfazed, "I know what today is, Elena. Today marks the fifth year anniversary of our official first meeting—not counting the first meeting where I saved your life."

"I'd like to focus in on one of the main words you said there. That word being "anniversary." It's the anniversary of our first meeting. Thus: today is our anniversary."

"Perhaps. But I'd rather celebrate the anniversary when we first started dating."

"Stefan, you never officially asked me out. We never even went out on an official date. We had a fight at a candlelight ceremony, I got frustrated and left, and then ended up at your house staring at the sky-"

"And kissing me."

"Yes. We kissed."

"So in my book that marked when we started dating. That's our anniversary. Or would you rather it be the first time we-"

"That's an anniversary occasion as well."

"Elena, the more things that we mark special, the less special everything we mark becomes."

"That sounded very wise, Yoda. These are all special to me. I had to learn to appreciate everything that comes to me because I never know how long I'll be able to have it. So forgive me if I want to celebrate every moment I began to fall in love with you."

"Pot? Meet Yoda Kettle. You sound pretty wise yourself, Ms. Gilbert."

She shrugs. "Having an eternity to work out angst has its benefits I guess."

"Of all the anniversaries we've had, I've always had a regret about one of them."

Completely blank she stares at him. "Regret? Why? Which one?"

"Our first anniversary. I was—not myself during that."

She nods at the memories. "What was so crazy about that time was we were so busy trying to fight off that year's evil that I nearly forgot the date myself. But when it hit me, it hurt so bad I could barely stand. And then you showed up and looked at me like you remembered. And that hurt so much worse."

"I did. I remembered everything. Did you think it was a coincidence I bumped into you at the mens restroom?"

"Things were so messed up then I honestly didn't know what to think. But there you were. And you taunted me. God, do you remember knocking that guy down on the track field that day? Poor kid just bumped into me and you freaked out!" Her laughter soothed that memory for Stefan.

Stefan looks down and then lifts his eyes back to hers that have never changed. He sees the forgiveness and will never understand how she so freely gave it.

"I did. I couldn't help myself. I was compelled to protect you but as much as I wanted to do it from afar I couldn't not be around you. And despite myself, I couldn't not be excited to see you. It's funny. Klaus told me to shut my emotions off so I couldn't show or express my love for you. But what he never understood—what I never understood—is that love isn't an emotion; it's the root core of a person. And I could no more sever that for you than I could stop living. So I got a little overprotective and because I had no conscience, I didn't care if someone else got hurt as long as you weren't."

He saw the clarity in Elena's expression. "That explains a lot, actually."

"That's why I tried to push you away from me and toward Damon. I remember the night you jumped off the bleachers. I remember telling you I was fine with the way you looked at my brother—of course I wasn't. I couldn't stop loving you or stop being jealous even though I couldn't express it. The next best thing was to make you stop loving me because I didn't deserve it. Then maybe when I was released from Klaus's compulsion, I could walk away because you would want me to."

She can't help herself. She takes his hand and holds it tightly. "You know I would never ask for that, right? I wouldn't have then either."

"I'll never understand why not, 'Lena. I was horrible to you. I broke every confidence and trust you placed in me."

"Would you have walked away from me "?

"I did," he says in a low voice.

"Different circumstances and you know it, Stefan. Your brother's life was on the line. So was mine. What other choice did you have? Let me ask you: when I lost myself to the blood three years ago and told you all the ways you could go to hell, did you walk away from me? I even made you think I was having doubts about us and secretly sleeping with Damon. Did you leave?"

He winces at the memory but still shook his head.

"And that's why I didn't leave you. Love is a decision that we make every single day. It isn't based on how I feel from day to day or what I feel in the moment. Love isn't conditional or based on my pride or disappointment. Love is the fact that as long as I've been alive or in-between, you're the only person who has ever made me feel okay to be exactly who it is I want to be. You look at my core and love me; how could I not do the same for you"?

She pulls him to her and caresses his cheek and kisses him softly. He kisses her back and they smile when they break apart.

"You're stuck with me, Salvatore." She smiles and kisses him again, this time with intentions for more.

"We should table this until after dinner I think."

"Table this. Interesting turn of phrase, Mr. Salvatore."

He laughs. "Completely innocent, Ms. Gilbert. I assure you."

"Perhaps but that doesn't mean I was." She pulls him back to her and kisses him more insistently. She leapt atop their dining room table and he found his way between her legs.

Whenever she found herself like this with Stefan, she always remembered Lexi's promise that Stefan would show her who he was and be himself with her in time. Five years later, she knew that was true.

She could never doubt how well she knew him or he her and she knew without a doubt that he had let most all of his inhibitions fall away with her. She knew Stefan could be fun but she had no idea how much fun.

Case in point: them making out while she sits on a kitchen table and her unbuckling his belt in preparation for what was to come.

Fortunately, she had been so busy watching him deftly maneuver his way around their kitchen and sipping wine, she had forgotten to set the table. Fortunate because there were no plates or glasses that needed to be shoved off as he laid her down on the table like she was the buffet.

Later...

He is still calming and breathing heavily into Elena's neck as he licks and kisses her senstive spots there. Her hands are torn between running through his hair and continuing to grip his ass, still shaking a bit from her release.

"We should table this more often."

"Agreed. I think I love you, Elena."

"I think I believe you, Stefan."

He groans and sighs as he backs away from her and tucks himself back into his jeans. She pulls her leggings back up, slides off the table, and tries to reorient herself to life without legs made of jelly.

She's been a vampire for five years. She can do most all of the tricks that comes with her undead nature.

All tricks except maintaining the ability to stand on two feet after your vampire boyfriend fucks you senseless.

She takes a deep breath and runs her fingers thruogh her hair trying to clear her head as Stefan makes sure their dinner hasn't burned. She looks at him and marvels at how easy it was for him to recover from their trysts. He wore a goofy smile and he was a little sweaty but those were the only tells she could read.

Little did she know he was so high from their coupling he could barely remember how to put words together not to mention, remember what he was doing in the kitchen before they had their random little interlude.

"So what's your favorite anniversary?"

"Definitely not the one where you decided that we should read _One Day _to each other while we were in London and we ended up sobbing in each other's arms for the better part of an afternoon. That definitely is *not* in my top 10," Stefan deadpans.

"I love how most of the time being 167 years old has no bearing on your memory until it comes to remembering whose idea it was to read _One Day_. If I recall you were the one who thought it romantic to read to each other all day long."

"Only because whenever I read you always want to know what I'm reading and you do the most annoying thing standing behind me and trying to read with me."

She throws a placemat at him with a little force behind it and it hits him squarely on the side of his head. "Oh, so it annoys you when I stand behind you? Well, there's a couple things you do when you, um, stand behind me, that could annoy me as well..." She gives him a leering glance.

Stefan looks shocked. "Is that a veiled threat against sexual favors, Ms. Gilbert? I'm shocked! Especially because those are moves you've seem to come to prefer over the years."

The blush that overtook her face right then was priceless. Yet she learned how to not totally let her attraction to this man cloud all her fun.

Elena smirked truly amused by this shift in conversation. "I'm just saying. You're not the only one who could be annoyed—if needed."

"Touche. By all means, stand behind me and read anytime you like," and Elena couldn't help but notice how his voice changed from playful to sexy flirty.

Stefan noticed the change in his tone as well. No, no. They couldn't let whatever this thing is happen again! They were in the kitchen for Chrissakes. So Elena took a deep breath and tried to reroute the conversation.

"Seriously. What's your favorite anniversary?"

"You tell me first."

Sighs. "The one we have every May 23rd."

Stefan turns and looks at her. "The car crash?"

She nods and he sees the water in the corner of her eyes. "The day you saved my life. The day my parents saved my life." She sighs. "The day my father gave me you. Oh my god, that's so corny, huh?"

He walks over to her and hugs her, kissing her forehead. "Absolutely. But I wouldn't have it any other way." He smiles at her and she smiles back.

She takes another deep breath as they continue to stare at one another. "Now, what's your favorite anniversary Stefan? Tell me before we face uncertain death again."

Stefan lets her go and walks back into the kitchen. "Come on, Stefan. I told you mine. [beat] Do you not have one? What is it?"

Still not facing her, he mumbles quickly mumbles something.

"Wha-?"

"We haven't had it yet," he turns facing her.

He nods his head in the direction of the other ring on her other ring finger. "That will be my favorite anniversary."

She has a watery smile just for him. "Good answer."


End file.
